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1982-2009 … The demand for conferring Bharat Ratna upon Dr Kurien still on
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Saturday, 13 June, 2009, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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Our Bureau, Mumbai
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 Today Dr Verghese Kurien completes 60 years of his grand service to the rural mission he conceived and believed in, unfortunately though while fighting for his life at Mumbai's Breach Candy Hospital. However, to mark his contribution, the alumni of the country's premier rural management institute -- Institute of Rural Management Anand (IRMA) -- have launched an online campaign demanding the government to wake up to the rural messiah's contribution and confer upon him the country's highest civilian honour -- Bharat Ratna.
Says Vaibhav Bhamoriya, secretary, IRMA Alumini Association, "The work that Dr Kurien has done goes much beyond an award. This campaign is to make people aware about the transformation he brought through his continuous, constant and sublime effort in the dairy industry. The magnitude of such a work might not be as instant as Tendulkar's century but is certainly magnanimous."
Now in his 87th year of life, Dr Kurien crafted the White Revolution for India which is fast being replicated by the countries around the world. He laid the foundation of IRMA in 1979, and remained IRMA's chairman till March 2006 and then was succeeded by Dr Y K Alagh. Says Vaibhav, "Even till the age of 85 his dedication to work did not diminish and he visited the IRMA office daily."
According to the reports, the Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF), the apex marketing body of all the 13 district dairy unions of Gujarat, has also pitched in with their support to the campaign launched by IRMA alumni.
Vaibhav further added, "Dr Kurien set up Amul, a 6,000 crore company, which was India's first billion dollar business company. Isn't it wonderful to get such a huge revenue from a set of 6 million illiterate farmers? There are a lot of innovations happening in rural areas at village levels even more than the much-hyped institutions. Not many are aware about the outstanding cattle feed services, vetenary management services and the world's first insurance coverage for milk producers that Amul has. And this was all based on the cooperative movement led by Dr Kurien."
So far more than 1,000 people have already signed the petition posted online and many more are likely to join as the campaign picks up. The students plan to send a petition to the President and the Prime Minister of India. Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF), which owns and markets Amul brand, has also supported the initiative taken by former students of IRMA.
Although, it's for the first time that formal petitions are being signed by Kurien's admirers, supporters of India's milkman have demanded a Bharat Ratna for Dr Kurien since 1982.
Dr Kurien has already been bestowed with Padma Shri in 1965, Padma Bhushan in 1966 and Padma Vibhushan in 1999. He is the recipient of FAO and Magsaysay awards, among several other international awards.
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